Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL), led by President & CEO Takeshi Hashimoto, announced that green hydrogen, produced offshore using the demonstration yacht “Winz Maru,” was supplied onshore in Tokyo’s central breakwater area as part of the “Wind Hunter Project.”, according to the company's release.
This project, focused on zero-emission solutions using wind power and hydrogen, marks the first instance globally of a vessel producing and supplying green hydrogen onshore while underway.
Between FY2021 and FY2023, MOL conducted tests in Omura Bay, Sasebo City, completing hydrogen production, storage, and onboard usage phases.
Since FY2023, under the Tokyo Bay eSG Project’s “Prior Projects,” MOL has shifted efforts to supplying green hydrogen from Winz Maru in Tokyo Bay to onshore facilities.
The vessel converts green hydrogen into methylcyclohexane (MCH) onboard, with modified MCH tanks and added turbine generators to ensure supply capacity, alongside safety adjustments for Tokyo Bay’s sea conditions compared to Omura Bay.
In FY2025, MOL plans to produce approximately 100 Nm3 of hydrogen, equivalent to 200 liters of MCH, in Tokyo Bay, while supplying electricity to a trailer home and other facilities in the central breakwater area.
The company is also studying a large demonstration vessel for the Wind Hunter project, targeting construction and commercialization in the 2030s, assuming a domestic hydrogen value chain develops. A model of the Wind Hunter will be displayed in the “Transportation and Mobility” zone at the “Future Society Showcase” pavilion during the 2025 World Exposition in Osaka, Kansai, from April 13, 2025.
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) is a Japanese shipping company founded in 1884, MOL operates over 800 vessels and provides global transportation and logistics services, employing more than 9,000 people.